Flicker
by DarthMittens
Summary: Six years later, Percy shows up in Camp Jupiter to return to a girl he rejected when they were teenagers. The real question is: Will she take him back?


**A/N: I'll admit it. This is my favorite PJO pairing.**

**Enjoy if you feel like it.**

**Flicker**

Reyna sighed before taking a drink from the water sitting on her chair, gesturing to the map of Camp Jupiter that was sitting on the table in front of her as she did so. She was currently teaching her Wednesday night class, War Strategy, to a group of fourteen-year-olds who looked like they wanted nothing more than to be anywhere else at the moment.

She didn't really blame them, personally. The last real threat to the Camp had taken place almost seven years ago, when the Prophecy of Seven took place. Before that, it had been many, many years since the camp had been attacked in any way, shape, or form. Thus, many of the students believed that this lesson wasn't all too relevant.

Reyna felt the same way, to be frank.

If the camp had really come under attack, she would currently be the one to give out the orders to defend camp. She had learned this map like the back of her hand, having grown up here and all, and knew there was nothing more she could learn from this. None of these kids would be the ones in charge of giving out orders, anyway.

She could feel the night get cooler as the sun finally gave way to the oppressing weight of the night sky, then sighed again as she realized that this class was meant to last for an hour more. Just when she had thought she was done with school, she was elected to be the new War Strategy instructor and had no choice but to accept the position, knowing there was nobody else to teach this class at the level she could.

Her class was suddenly interrupted when a man suddenly opened the door and stood it in the doorway, his sea-green eyes locked on hers. He had messy black hair and slight stubble growing along his jaw, his button-up shirt misbuttoned, the sleeves rolled up past his elbows. When Reyna finally focused on his eyes, which were slightly obscured by the smoke coiling up toward the ceiling, she found that his eyes were missing something that she couldn't quite put her finger on.

Then the realization hit her. Percy Jackson, a man who she hadn't seen in a little over five years and who she had expected to never see again, was standing in her classroom, a cigarette dangling between his lips and a dead look in his eyes.

And, staring into his eyes, an inexplicable surge of anger flowed through her. Words came tumbling out before her brain could catch up with them. "No smoking in the building," she said, her tone of voice dropping the temperature in the room more effectively than a blizzard.

Percy stood there for a moment, arching a single eyebrow at her before raising a single drop of water from her glass and using it to put out the cigarette, tossing it in the trash afterward.

He obviously had no intention of leaving anytime soon, and even though Reyna had a feeling of apprehension about the coming conversation she was about to have with Percy, she couldn't help but be thankful that she now had an excuse to end this class that was wasting everyone's time at the moment.

It wasn't like she would be able to teach a class when the man she had confessed her feelings for when they were seventeen was standing in the room.

So the class cried out in joy as they filed out of the room and headed out into the night, leaving the two former Praetors alone. And as Reyna looked at Percy, who had an aura of absolute shame radiating from him, she felt her anger evaporate. There was no point in staying angry at him for something he had no control over, especially during such a confusing time during his life.

She nearly bumped into him as she headed for the door herself, grabbing her coat and shrugging it on as she did so. As she stepped outside, she finally spoke again. "You don't plan to stand in there all night, do you?"

Percy seemed to have sensed the change of tone in her voice, for he finally looked up at her. He wordlessly stepped outside and waited for her to close and lock the door, then started walking along the walkway with her, the moon just peeking over the mountains but still managing to give them far more than enough light to see by.

Reyna stayed silent as she took in that Percy was actually here, standing beside her, seeming almost lifeless. Why was here? Why now?

There was no way for her to know without asking him, so she decided to finally start up a conversation. Never one to beat around the bush, she asked him, "So what are you doing here?"

Percy winced as Reyna's voice snapped the silence that they had held. He cleared his throat and shrugged as he fished for an answer, not really having one himself. "I don't know," he said, deciding honesty was his best option. "I wanted to see you."

A pulse of anger rippled through her, though only momentarily. Nevertheless, she couldn't help but bitterly say, "Well that's a change."

Percy sighed, making Reyna angrier. What right did he have to sigh like that when he was the one who had decided to break the peace she had held, tenuous as it was, by showing his face around here again? Didn't he know that she had no desire to see or speak with him?

The silence that settled around them was thick and uncomfortable as Percy desperately racked his brain for anything that might make this conversation play out in a fashion similar to the one he had imagined.

Is that what he really wanted, though? Did he want to avoid anything that might make them argue? Did he want to have a peaceful, merry conversation right now so they could have the more painful discussions later on?

That wasn't how either of them operated.

"Annabeth and I broke up," Percy said, looking up at the moon. Reyna remained silent. "It was about eight months ago, though any feelings we once had for each other died out long before that."

"What does that have to do with why you're here right now, walking with me in Camp Jupiter?" Reyna asked softly, sticking to the point just as much as Percy.

Another long, deep breath. He rubbed his eyes wearily. "I...I don't...I was lonely," he said, finally settling on the truth. He just couldn't lie to her.

Reyna stopped in her tracks, anger burning in her eyes as Percy turned to face her. "And you came running here expecting me to fix that?"

"No," came the immediate, determined response. "I came here seeking to fix that for myself."

Reyna rolled her eyes. "So I'm just the tool you mean to use to patch up whatever hole Annabeth left," she said cynically, mockingly.

And Percy felt a spark of emotion, something he hadn't really felt in years. It was anger - that much was for certain. "Annabeth has nothing to do with this," he said. "Stop making this about her."

Reyna bristled at being told what to do. She couldn't stand it. "Then tell me what this is about," she said through clenched teeth. "I don't have all night to stand here waiting while you figure out why you're here."

"I came here to apologize," Percy said, feeding the spark of emotion he felt and letting it guide him like a beacon as to what his purpose here was.

Reyna pinched the bridge of her nose. "You're apologizing for something that happened six years ago?" she asked. "You made a two-thousand mile trip for that? Unbelievable."

"Not just for that," Percy said, slightly surprising Reyna. He had never used such a defiant tone of voice with her. "Though I stick by what I said. I rejected you pretty harshly."

Reyna scoffed. That was putting it lightly.

"I was an idiot and thought love existed with Annabeth where there was none," he said. "I had let you down easy the first time and was impatient the second. I didn't take your feelings into consideration."

There was silence again as Reyna fought the burning sensation in her throat, the feelings from six years ago hitting her full-force again. She would never forget the words Percy used to tell her to stop expressing her feelings for him. "You completely destroyed my self-confidence," she admitted, still hurt. "You completely destroyed...me."

"I know," Percy said. "And I was an idiot. And that's why I'm apologizing. You can take it or leave it."

And he waited for her to take it or leave it. Honestly, though, this was getting to be a bit too much for Reyna. First she hadn't seen Percy in almost six years, and now he was dropping all of this information and emotion onto her. What was she supposed to do?

"I've done a lot of thinking over the past eight months," Percy continued when it became apparent that Reyna had no intention of doing anything with his apology anytime soon. "I don't know how it happened, but my thoughts took me back here. To when we were kids. To when I was an idiot. To the moment when I made what might have been the biggest mistake in my life."

"And what exactly do you mean by that?"

Percy sighed. "What I mean is that...well, maybe I should have realized how I felt about you back when we were teenagers, and not...well...now."

So the sense of apprehension she had felt was indicating impending danger. She had never learned what to do in a situation like this. She laughed disbelievingly before she even knew what she was doing. "Percy, you're six years too late," she said, her laugh of disbelief turning into a laugh of humor as Percy's face turned a bit red. She could see that she was hurting him – she just didn't care. "What, did you expect me to wait for you forever?" she asked as if he was an idiot.

Percy's hands clenched into fists at his side. "No," he said quietly. "No, I didn't." He swallowed nervously. "You have a boyfriend, then?"

And it was Reyna's turn for her cheeks to turn red. "No," she said just as quietly, all momentum lost by that verbal slap to the face. She had deserved that one. "No, I don't."

Percy quickly gathered his courage and asked, "And how do you feel about me?"

Reyna's mouth went dry. What was she supposed to do? What was she supposed to say when she didn't even know the answer?

She kept her mouth shut, sticking her chin out defiantly as she met Percy's eyes. What she saw when she truly focused on him instead of her own thoughts surprised her. Gone was the Percy she had first seen earlier. Back was the Percy she knew, just with a bit of stubble. There was a familiar fire in his eyes and he had returned to holding himself with confidence.

Reyna's stomach did a pleasurable little flip. There was no way to resist it when Percy's eyes were like that.

"I was an idiot, Reyna, and I accept that and acknowledge it," he said. "I'm not going to beg for your forgiveness forever, and I'm certainly not going to forever beat myself up over it. So I'm going to ask you again. What are the chances that you can move on from the past? And...what are the chances that you'll move on with me? Even though you were the one who was undoubtedly hurt more, I think we've both done our fair share of waiting."

Reyna felt her heart pounding in her rib cage For the second time in as many minutes, she didn't know what to do or say. There was nothing in the war room that was like this. Everything was black and white, clear cut in the war room. There was no set counter-attack for this.

"You destroyed me," she said, betrayed. She couldn't let go of that. Why was he so ready to overlook it? "You shattered me into a million little pieces."

Percy let out a frustrated sound, then gripped her shoulders fiercely, looking into her eyes with sincerity and passion. "Then I'll put you back together."

The determination burning in his eyes told Reyna that he was speaking nothing but the truth – that he meant every word that was coming out of his mouth.

Then he said it. "I love you."

He said it so quietly that the biting wind almost snatched it from her, but she just barely managed keep hold of it, letting it fill her with feelings that were, much to her surprise, not as long gone as she had thought.

He was breathing heavily, his eyes and determination unwavering. "Assuming you still love me, doesn't everything else pale in comparison?"

Reyna was surprised to find that her cheeks were still burning. Embarrassed, she said, "If you're lying, I'm going to find the most unpleasant way to emasculate you. Physically."

"I love you," he said without hesitation or fear, driving it home that there was absolutely no possibility of him lying.

Reyna swallowed. This was happening too quickly. She needed a second to put her thoughts in order. So she took that second before answering.

She undoubtedly loved this man standing in front of her, and his every action he was displaying was reminding her why. Was it enough to make her let go of the pain she had made him carry for the past six years?

She met his eyes, the most sincere, beautiful eyes she had ever seen, and immediately knew the answer.

"You better never let me go again, or it'll be the last time you ever get the chance to," she said quietly, looking down at the ground near his left foot. She had never been the best with emotional stuff like this.

A single finger lifted her chin so she was looking into his smiling eyes.

"While I may be an idiot, I'm not quite _that _much of an idiot," he said.

She slowly reached her hand across toward him and grabbed his, slightly surprising him. Then she began walking again, a brilliant blush on her face. This whole situation was so surreal, though now in the best way possible.

Despite knowing what her feelings were for him right now, she wouldn't give him the satisfaction of telling him how she felt immediately – he would have to work hard for that. He deserved just a little bit of suffering.

Instead, her heart lighter than it had been since before Percy Jackson had first arrived at Camp Jupiter so many years ago, she said, "I missed you."

He didn't say anything back; he just gave her hand a slight squeeze in return.

And she knew that everything in the world was as it was meant to be.

After all, nothing else mattered if they loved each other, right?

**A/N: A stunning one hour and twelve minutes to type 2,600 words with no sort of outline, even in my head. Just a beginning, an active imagination, and some quick fingers! ****Hope you all enjoyed it and I hope you review!**


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